LANSDALE — As Richard Ryan Handy squirmed on the ground, trying to stop arresting Lansdale officers from handcuffing him in front of his Hatfield home, Hardy had one odd thing to say, according to police: “Release the pitbulls, all of them!”

Police said the strange encounter in the early morning hours of Aug. 24 began about 15 minutes earlier — around 2;20 a.m. — when a Lansdale patrol officer saw two men in a pickup truck pull up next to a blue Dodge truck in the 500 block of North Cannon Avenue, get out of their vehicle and begin banging on the driver’s side window, shouting, “Get out of the car!”

When the officer arrived at the scene, according to the criminal complaint, the two men started walking away from the blue truck as the driver — later identified as 28-year-old Handy — sped off. The officer ordered the other two men to remain at the scene while he drove after Handy.

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Handy refused to stop, even after the Lansdale officer turned on his lights and sirens, police said, and he took off through the borough with police in hot pursuit.

At one point, according to the complaint, a Lansdale officer in a marked vehicle placed himself in Handy’s path on Squirrel Lane, but Handy “wildly swerved” around the vehicle and into oncoming traffic before continuing on and crossing into Hatfield Township.

Finally, police said, Handy pulled into the driveway of a house on the 1000 block of Peaceful Lane — police later determined it was Handy’s residence — which was approximately a mile from where the chase began.

The Lansdale officer in closest pursuit got out of his vehicle and ordered Handy out of his truck with his hands in the air — Handy complied, according to the complaint, but when the officer ordered him to turn around, Handy allegedly began shouting profanities and refused.

As other Lansdale officers arrived at the scene and attempted to place Handy in handcuffs, police allege Handy “tensed up his whole body” and officers were forced to bring him to the ground, where he allegedly continued to struggle.

At that point, according to the complaint, Handy allegedly yelled, “Release the pitbulls, all of them!” and then continued to scream profanities and insist that officers had no right to arrest him as he was taken into custody at 2:35 a.m.

Police said they spoke to Handy’s girlfriend, who was in the front passenger seat of the truck during the pursuit, and she claimed she told Handy to stop the truck “numerous times” during the chase.

Arresting officers said they detected a strong odor of alcohol on Handy’s breath and noticed his speech was slurred. Handy was transported to Towamencin police headquarters where the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Department took a breath sample and determined Handy’s blood-alcohol content was 0.158 percent — nearly twice the legal limit — according to police.

Handy was arraigned later that day before District Judge Margaret Hunsicker of Norristown on one count of felony attempting to elude police, one count of misdemeanor resisting arrest and two misdemeanor DUI offenses.

Hunsicker set bail at $10,000 unsecured, and Handy remains free while awaiting a preliminary hearing before District Judge Harold Borek of Lansdale scheduled for Oct. 10.

On Wednesday, a Lansdale police spokesperson said that at no point during the incident did officers see pitbulls or any other dogs in the area, adding that they “had no idea” what Handy was talking about.